NASA Extracts Oxygen from Moon Dust, Paving the Way for Lunar Colonization.

NASA has successfully extracted oxygen from simulated lunar soil in a vacuum, using a specialized carbothermal reactor. This achievement is a major stride towards enabling sustained human presence on the Moon by providing vital oxygen resources for life support and transportation, potentially revolutionizing future Artemis missions and broader space exploration. The team used a high-powered laser to simulate heat from a solar energy concentrator and melted the lunar soil simulant within a carbothermal reactor developed for NASA by Sierra Space Corp.